Remakes of well-loved films are often misguided, pointless or unnecessary. Nobody, for example could improve on the original Wizard of Oz, Casablanca or HighNoon. That’s not always, true, however. Some remakes build on the original work and bring it to a whole new audience.

I think that’s true of the new version of Clash of the Titans, currently doing the rounds in the cinemas. The story is simple. Mankind has annoyed the gods. Statues of Zeus have been overturned by these ancient Greek versions of Richard Dawkins. Hades is contracted to punish the humans who have dared to defy the gods, although he has an ulterior motive; he wants to supplant Zeus. It’s a bit like the relationship between Yahweh and Satan in the Old Testament book of Job.

Ray Harryhausen’s much loved original was a staple of Sunday afternoon television for many years. It was famous for it’s stop-go models as Perseus took on Medusa the gorgon and a whole host of fabulous creatures in order to save a Greek maiden from a fearsome sea monster.

Today we have computer general images to bring more terrifying monsters to the big screen. The modern Clash of the Titans even comes in 3D bringing a whole new dimension to Perseus’s attempts to kill Medusa without being turned to stone by her gaze. This Medusa really is scary. She caused quite a few cinema patrons to jump in their seats and spill their popcorn.

Full marks, then for this remake but I’m still not sure whether 3D is the next big thing or a passing gimmick. It’s certainly not worth a £2.50 premium. Time will tell.